The Fall of Winter
by IvanLoverSai
Summary: When a certain Russian's Mission goes wrong, what will it take to make new allies, enemies,and get out of the war alive.
1. Chapter 1

~The Fall of Winter~

-Chapter 1-

It was about mid-morning as the cargo plane was flying above a vast snowy landscape. The two passengers within knew what was coming, it was the war, and they couldn't take chances with failing their mission.

A Chinese man spoke up. He wore a dark green uniform that had a red armband around the left arm. His hair was a black brown that was a little bit longer than shoulder length and tied in a ponytail. Despite his youthful appearance, he was much older than his fellow Comrade on tow with him. "The drop zone is up a head Ivan, are you prepared for your launch?" the Chinese man asked with slight worry in his voice. The young man he was asking looked up from a curled up position, retreating from the sheet of coordinates he had on a clip-board for the mission. His beige blond hair blended perfectly with the Red-army uniform he wore from his country, made for the snow and harsh winter conditions at this time of year, it was perfect for the young man. Ivan was his name, and despite his childish demeanor, he could be quite sadistic and terrifying if you got on his bad side.

The Russian looked up from his papers in response to the Chinese man. "Yes, I am well prepared for what is ahead. The snow is thick around here Yao, and I know these mountains well… I even think I could go without a parachute." Ivan let out a chuckle at his final retort. Yao looked disapproving at this, worried for the Russian's safety. "I trust you know these parts, but it's dangerous to go without a parachute Ivan… I mean you could hit a shallow patch of snow and crash into rocks or a tree…aru!" Yao's accent was slipping with his annoyance, but he only wanted Ivan to be safe. "Listen Ivan, your safety is our Priority. Do well on this mission and be sure to radio in if you have any sort of problem."

Ivan just stared at Yao standing near the open door to the plane with a smile on his face. He had obviously had this sort of lecture before from Yao… way too much. Ivan was a risk taker and he loved it. "Don't worry Yao, I promise I won't get shot, mauled, or killed in a gruesome way". The Chinese man just smiled at those violet eyes brimming with something mysterious. "alright the drop site is just ahead" came a voice over the plane's radio, the Pilot had signaled for the drop.

"I guess that's my call" Ivan said with joy in his voice. Although he knew about the dangers down below, Ivan had to plan his jump well, but the bright morning sun mixed with mountain clouds had made it harder to see what would be a deep or shallow patch of snow below, so he had to take his chances. The plane flew closer to the ground, and the Russian prepared himself for the jump.

"Good Luck" Yao had whished Ivan, knowing that he could as well be injured or killed with his stunt, but he's never seen him do it before, Yao knew that Ivan has done it multiple times and had lectured him for it. Ivan made a quick check to the supplies he had on his body, rations, radio, a med kit, Tokorev pistol, ammunition, and a bed spread with blanket.

Yao gave a thumbs up, signaling it was okay to jump. Ivan nodded in approval and took his dive. He leapt out of the plane, wind nipping at his face with sub-zero temperature."Vodka!" Ivan let out a yell for what he loved the most, aiming his fall at what appeared to be a soft, deep patch of snow. He braced for impact and hit the icy blanket of snow hard, various sounds of cracking had reverberated through the air.

Ivan managed to pull himself out of the big hole he had made in the snow, a sharp pain jolted up his body as he collapsed to the ground under his own weight and pain. He'd managed to break his left leg and arm, and various ribs. Ivan curled up in pain, but was thankful it wasn't his neck that had suffered the fate of his injured limbs. "shit… this isn't good, and the front is just meters away too…".

Ivan scanned his surroundings. He was near some trees, and appeared to have hit a rocky outcrop near them covered in snow. There were mountains surrounding the area, left and right, but he knew that he was close, he could hear gunshots nearby and knew his troops were not far away. He was lucky that the plane had notified the front of the drop site's coordinates. The problem is that the location of where Ivan is would have changed with the drop and wind velocity. The only thing he could do now is wait in pain for a fellow comrade to come, and fight off any bears that may be in the area with his Tokorev.

The Russian pulled his radio from one of the pouches he had on his belt, and instinctively turned it on to the plane's frequency and pulled it to his mouth, trying to hold back the pain in his voice. "This is Ivan Braginsky, I've got a serious problem… do you read me?" No reply, Static and white noise echoed through the radio. Ivan Tried again with the radio "This is Ivan Braginsky… Do you Read me?... please answer…" Ivan had tried once more to no avail. The Russian cursed under his breath, he was losing hope, his radio was broken from the fall just like his bones were. Maybe he should have listened to Yao and equipped a parachute, but that would have drawn the enemy's attention towards him and bring more danger to him and his comrades.

Ivan focused on a nearby tree that had barely any snow under one side of it, he saw this as a nice place to seek shelter until his comrades came this way… if they ever did. Ivan dragged himself from his hole, not wanting it to be his grave, he risked further injury as he pulled himself closer and closer to his target using the last of his body strength moving his uninjured arm and leg. After what had seemed like an hour, Ivan had made it to his little sanctuary under the tree. He proceeded to sit against the trunk of the tree on the ground, like it were a comfy couch. Ivan knew he needed warmth if he was to be staying under this tree until help arrived. He struggled to get the bedding roll over his left arm due to the pain, but he pulled it off and had proceeded to unravel the roll and wrap the blanket around the whole of his body.

Ivan's body was filled with intense pain every time he moved, so he had decided that staying still was the best choice. Sitting there, under what was a pine tree, staring at the Russian winter that surrounded him and which also dared to freeze him where he sat. Gunshots still reverberated in the distance, along with the sound of men yelling. It was getting closer, and closer even to the point where he could hear the feet of the soldiers trudge through the snow. Ivan knew that help would be on his way. "Is anyone out there? I need Help! Help me Please!..." He yelled using the last of his strength… hoping someone would hear him and respond, but Ivan was growing tired from the pain and exertion. Everything was starting to get blurry. Sound was distorting, but he swore he could hear voices and footsteps coming his way… everything was black… Darkness and warmth was the only thing that surrounded Ivan now.

* * *

"…Help!" The words were muffled amongst the trees, but the young soldier who heard it couldn't help but to respond back, knowing it could be an injured soldier or an enemy, he risked the latter of it. "where are you!" the young soldier had yelled back, hoping for a response, he got none besides the cold wind nipping at his face and blowing his brown hair away from it. He looked towards the two other men that were with him who looked at the Brunette with worry. "Is something the matter Toris?" spoke a blonde haired soldier wearing glasses. He was standing next to a shorter, but much younger soldier who had short messy hair of the same colour.

"… Oh Eduard… Raivis… did you hear a voice calling for help just now?..." Toris looked worriedly at the two other men, his green eyes reflecting what he was feeling… worry. Eduard looked at Toris quizzically " I don't believe I heard anything, but if you insist we check it out Captain… I'll have to go over the possibilities of what you heard…" Eduard pushed up his glasses, he was obviously trying to state that Toris was either going insane or there was something else going on. Eduard was very intelligent so the way he brought things out often confused those who didn't understand him.

Toris frowned slightly at the taller blonde who just stood there smiling with his witty demeanor. Raivis stood in place looking down as if afraid to speak up, but he brought up the courage to talk past his shaking. "I… I heard a voice as well Toris… I think we should check it out… that is if you insist" Eduard looked at the shaking teen that was Raivis with a hint of surprise, it was something he did not expect to hear from the shy quivering boy.

"Alright, than it's decided… We'll go check it out. The voice came from that Direction" The brunette had pointed towards the trees near a clearing, a smile growing on his face. Eduard rolled his eyes, as this was expected from Toris. Raivis kept close by to Eduard, who was sort of like a big brother much like Toris was to him. The three men trudged through the snow towards the clearing following, what had sounded like moans of pain hidden within the sound of the wind and the sounds of gunshots in the background.

Many moments had passed as the three men made their way through the dense Russian forest, it was like a scene out of a painting, Snow had glazed the pine trees like a neatly frosted cake, it was a wonderful sight to the eye, yet unforgiving in winter. The men had stopped in their tracks when their fellow Comrade Eduard had noticed something peculiar in these woods. "I think I see something…" Eduard had pointed out towards a tree that had a lump of a figure nestled underneath it… the light green-brown blanket almost hiding the figure from sight. "Where?" Toris interjected, out of curiosity. "Just to your left, look at that tree" Eduard pointed out to the tree once more. Toris instantly took notice of the figure beneath it and ran over through the trees and snow, the other two men following right behind him.

They reached the man who was huddled underneath the tree, his blonde hair covering up parts of his face past his ushanka. "Are you okay?" Toris asked, shaking the man on the shoulders. No response. He felt for a pulse and found one. The man was unconscious, but alive. He appeared to have fallen unconscious just a short while ago, he was still warm, but barely. The brunette took a look at his uniform from under the blanket for identification. "It's a Russian Uniform… I don't think we have to worry about him being a German soldier…" Toris said with a sigh of relief, the other two came closer to the unconscious man. "Let me take a look at him" retorted Eduard as he moved to the man's side, he was trained in first aid and knew what he was doing, the other two moved aside.

Eduard felt the man's body for any sort of wound or a sign of blood, with medical precision. His hands ran upon a hard wet protrusion on the Unconscious man's left leg, the bone was poking out of his skin and was bleeding through his pants. He then felt his other leg, arms, chest, back, head, and found that his left arm and some ribs felt odd, suggesting a fracture or break, but he'd have to strip the unconscious man to look for any bruising suggesting that.

Eduard looked to Toris and Raivis with a serious face, causing the two to flinch at this unfamiliar face on Eduard. "we're gonna have to take him to the Medical tent nearby" He spoke in a soft, but serious tone, his hands covered with blood from the man's wounded leg. The two others took notice of this and looked away from the blonde slightly "He doesn't look too good, and appears to have some broken bones so we'll have to be careful when we carry him to base." Toris and Raivis nodded their heads in response to their comrade and proceeded to lift the heavy unconscious body, which was too heavy for poor Raivis to carry. So Eduard had to carry in his place.

The three men made sure that they carried the unconscious man's body with care, trying not to injure him anymore than he already was. They walked through the forest slowly and back to the direction where the camp was, just 100 meters away.

"How long do we have to carry him for…?" Toris said with struggle in his voice, the man was obviously heavier and taller than he was, and it was showing. "Approximately three more minutes…" Eduard was also showing some struggle in his voice, carrying the 200lb man through the woods towards the base. Raivis followed behind with a worried look on his face as he watched his fellow comrades lug the injured man away. It felt like forever with the man's weight weighing on both of them, but they made it to the base and made their way to the medical tent, where they placed the Russian down on a free cot gently.

Shortly after, Eduard had left the tent to grab a medic, with Raivis following shortly behind. Toris had pulled up a chair and sat next to the unconscious man, and placed a hand upon his sleeping face. The man had the look of pain and comfort as he lay upon his cot. Toris looked down to the unconscious man's chest and noticed a dog tag hanging out of his over coat. He grabbed it and read the name Ivan Braginsky which was etched into the small metal plate. Although it was in Russian, Toris could read it. He knew the man's name now. "I hope you're okay Ivan…I went through some trouble to find you and get you here…" he chuckled softly as he sat next to the unconscious blonde, watching him with a smile on his face.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Well hello, I hope you're enjoying this so far, I'll be working more on the plot and outcome, so expect more between Toris and Ivan, and some more characters in the future. This chapter is also a little bit longer, but it's necessary for what I'm going to be doing. Expect a chapter to come at least once or so a week, but it usually depends on my time as well. So Thank you for your support everyone :D

* * *

**-Chapter 2-**

The sun was lapping warmly upon Ivan's face. He lay content within the fields of towering flowers, massive brown and yellow faces watching the sun as it progressed through the day. Ivan heard two familiar voices, they were female, and they called out to him. "Vanya, where are you Vanya?" came a female voice. "Brother… Please come out…" spoke a voice that was much younger than the previous one. This caught the Russian's attention he knew whose voices they belonged to. He stood up upon the flowers and searched for the voices that were so familiar to him. "Yekaterina…? Natalya? Is that you? Where are you?..." Ivan was confused; the flowers surrounding him blocked his view and appeared to be getting bigger. "Ivan….. Come out please…. Vanya…. Please, we just want to see our Brother again…" The voices were distorting and getting closer every so often, and this set off the trapped Russian. The flowers were closing in… tighter and tighter until Ivan could move no more. His breathing was becoming erratic, heart beat rising. The scene around him was changing… fields were burning. The flowers that once looked at the sun with heads held high were now drooping to the ground, wilting under the heat of the flaming tongues that licked upon them.

Tears ran down the Russian's face "Natalya! Yekaterina! Where are you!" no response came for Ivan, he was left alone among the ashes and burning flowers. "I want to see you again… I want to see your faces once more…" Ivan spoke with remorse, tears pouring out, but it was not crying that came out of the blonde man. Laughter came from behind those tears, mixed with sorrow. The flames were coming closer to Ivan, searing the flesh from the summer clothes he wore, singing the hair upon his body. The Russian let out a scream as intense pain was sent through his body. It was an indescribable pain… searing pain like one thousand cattle prods being branded onto his body at once than being dipped in alcohol, it was truly hell for the Russian. The world was becoming black again, the fields around Ivan… everything was enveloped in a blanket of darkness.

"Everything… will be…okay….every….thing…will…be…okay…" The voices of Ivan's sisters returned, whispering words slowing and breaking apart echoing into the darkness. He felt Icy cold arms wrap around him, growing tighter and tighter with every breath Ivan took. The invisible hands slowly turned visible. Two figures dressed in Red cloaks hugged tightly to the young man. "We want you home with us Vanya" Spoke both the girls, their blonde hair floating as if it were underwater… their eyes as black as the darkness around them. "Yekaterina… Natalya… Please let go…" Ivan was getting scared, his skin running cold with fear… he could not move for the two specters held him in place.

"Come….Home….Join…us…Family….always…Love…You" The sentence broke apart like a broken radio with bad static, and sounded like such… The Darkness slowly started to fade away, as the warmth returned to the world.

* * *

Light poured into Ivan's eyes, his sight was met with an unfamiliar face, a man with shoulder length brown hair, wearing a soviet uniform like his and had a calming look on his face. Ivan didn't have enough time to survey his location when the air around him was met with a cracking sound. Sharp pain was brought through the Russian's left arm, someone had set the bone. Ivan tried to free himself from the pain, but was met with a hand pressed down on the uninjured part of his bare now bandaged chest. It was the brown haired man holding him steady. "No, Ivan… Please don't move for your sake." He spoke with a gentle voice, but what confused the Russian more was that he knew his name.

The injured blonde paid no heed to what the brunette had said, he tried to wiggle himself free from the unfamiliar man's grasp, but he was met with another voice… different from the Brunette's. "I wouldn't move if I were you, you're leg is broken, and you have some broken ribs and a broken arm as well" The voice came from a blonde haired man wearing glasses, Donning the same uniform as the Brunette, but lacking the overcoat. Ivan sunk back into his cot feeling defeated by the man. "Where am I… and who are you…?" Ivan asked in a tired weak voice, a lot was taken out of him with his previous experience. "You are in a medical tent on a soviet base, don't worry we are allies." Ivan's attention was shifted to the brunette. "Is that so…" a faint smile could be seen growing on the Russian's face.

"Yes… You can call me Toris, and my comrade here is Eduard." He pointed to the blonde that was standing on the left side of the Russian's cot. Eduard simply pushed up his glasses. "I'm your medic now considering the one I was looking for was shot dead" The blonde had commented with little remorse, it was the war and death was something these men were used to, but one less medic was an unfortunate thing. "We have another one with us, he's much younger… his name is Raivis…" Toris had added to his previous comment. Ivan stared at the ceiling of the tent, feeling a bit chilly noticing that a thick blanket covered most of his mid-section. Although he was lucky enough there was a lamp pumping out heat next to him. His left leg and about half of his chest was exposed from the blanket, and when he saw the wound on his left leg he sunk back into bed with a solemn look.

"How… bad is it…?" The Russian asked looking scarily serious... he was unaware of how bad his leg was injured until now. The blond standing on his left spoke up in response "It's bad… but it can be fixed. I just need to sterilize the wound and move the bone back in place… than stitch up the torn flesh and then set the bone using splints like I did with your arm" The blond gestured towards Ivan's left forearm which was bound between two wooden splints. "Raivis should be back any second now with the sterilizing alcohol." Toris informed Eduard, but had felt worried for the young boy's safety. Almost on queue but a few moments late a young blond came bounding through the tent holding what appeared to be a brown bottle, gasping for breath. "I had to salvage this off of that dead medic's body you know…" Raivis spoke catching his breath as he placed down a bag and the bottle on an adjacent table then proceeded to sit down to watch his comrades.

"Thank you Raivis" Both Toris and Eduard praised their younger comrade, for now they could help their injured ally. Eduard started to prep himself for the procedure he was going to do to the Russian, he had an unmistakable look of confidence on his face yet there was a hint of uneasiness. Sweat was forming on Ivan's body, he knew what was coming and all he could do was look at the Brunette with the look like a child would give if they didn't want medicine. Toris noticed this and raised his eyebrows. It looked cute and a bit scary on the injured man. "Don't give me that look… It's for your own good, you'll be alright" Toris' voice was quivering a bit at this statement; he looked to his fellow comrade who was holding a cloth and the bottle of alcohol, than he looked to the Russian who appeared like he was expecting the worst of pain to come upon him. "I'm ready now Toris, please hold Ivan down and stick this in his mouth" He handed Toris a piece of thick leather to use as a gag on the injured man, and stuck it unwillingly into Ivan's mouth. Ivan glared at the two men, and took hold of the brunette's forearm. "Hey! Let go…." Ivan stared into the brunette's green eyes, as the trapped man struggled for a moment but then gave up to Ivan's strength grasping at his arm.

Alcohol met the open wound and bone causing a burning pain to shoot up the Russian's leg. Pained breathing and groaning could be heard past the leather in the Russian's mouth. His grasp tightening around Toris' fore-arm, which started to hurt the brunette. The worst was yet to come… Eduard had started to place the bone back into the leg, putting it back to its original position.

This caused the worst pain for Ivan, making him to yell past his muffle as the bone was sliding back in place slowly, it was hell for the poor man. His heart beat was rising, more sweat was forming, and his stomach was starting to churn with the stress and pain. Ivan tried to hold back the urge to retch past the leather, but the extreme pain was too much and he spat out the gag along with his stomach's contents onto the poor brunette's legs and onto himself. This hurt Ivan's ribs causing him to groan out in pain. Toris tried to move away but the Russian's hold kept him in place and in line of the small torrent of partially digested food. Ivan sunk back down, the extreme pain starting to slide away but lingering. He showed a look of regret towards Toris who was cringing with what had happened to him and let go of his hold on the poor man's arm.

"Shoot, Toris can you clean that up. I'll proceed to stitch this up" Eduard glanced up from what he was doing, and Toris complied not saying a word and went to clean the mess off the Russian and himself. Raivis couldn't help but stifle a laugh at this event, which caused a glare to shoot at him from Toris who was blushing. Eduard ignored his fellow comrades as he finished his job by bandaging the leg and placing a splint along it. "I'm guessing you're finished now Eduard? I'll keep an eye on Ivan for now…" Toris said, hiding the embarrassment of the event that happened before. Eduard nodded his head and went to clean up. The blond told Raivis to grab some warm clothes. Moments later Ivan was carefully placed in his original clothing, minding his wounds. The Russian did not fight with what was happening to him. He'd been injured before in the past and did not want to make things worse for himself. He was also really tired from his ordeal and was left to rest, the trio of soldiers allowed Toris to supervise the young man.

* * *

"I'm heading out Toris, I've got to get back to scouting the area... if you need anything just radio in to my frequency." Eduard informed Toris as he slid back into his thick overcoat that was made for the cold. The blond gave a salute, picked up a gun and some supplies then left the tent. Toris looked to his younger comrade, who was standing with a confused look on his face. "Can you do me a favor and grab some rations from the canteen" The brunette commanded calmly to the younger boy. "Yes sir" Raivis gave a salute and went off outside the tent to rummage through the crates filled with rations. In which they called the canteen. This left an awkward silence between the two men, besides the gunshots echoing in the background.

Although that silence was broken by the Russian, who was supposed to be asleep. "A radio, da?... Can I use it, mine is busted.." He glared at the man adjacent to him, who looked back with a slight frown on his face. "Aren't you supposed to be sleeping? You can use the radio after you're rested..." he scolded the Injured man, but to no avail Ivan stared back which brought a chill through Toris' body. "I won't say it again... I need to contact my superior as to what happened..." Ivan spoke with a cold voice, he could see the uncomfortable shifting in the other man's eyes. He was getting what he wanted.

"If thats... The case... then I guess I can let this slip..." Toris replied, his voice quivering slightly. As if against his will the young man pulled a radio out from the pouch on his waist and handed it to the injured man. Ivan grabbed the radio and punched in Yao's frequency, waiting for a response."General Yao, this is Colonel Braginsky, do you read me?" he spoke into the radio with a bit of weakness to his voice, a crackle emanated from the radio after he spoke. "This is General Yao, did you reach your target? You're a bit late..." Yao spoke in his usual voice, but there was a hint of irritation hidden within. "umm... well, you remember when you told me to put a parachute on... well" The Russian spoke with a lighter tone, showing less formality to the man on the other line. "What did I tell you about jumping without a parachute Ivan! ... Don't tell me you got Injured!" Yao interrupted the Russian mid conversation, this caused Ivan to smile hearing the Chinese man's angry voice, he laughed in response. "Please let me talk... Da.. I am injured, But I am safe on an allied base...I'm not sure where though." Ivan finally got through to the angered man on the other line. Toris stood back obviously hearing what the man was saying past the radio... he held back a grin from forming on his face.

"I swear when you get back Ivan... I will give you a lecture you won't forget, aru!" he responded irritated at the Russian's actions, but he appeared to have quieted down after hearing he was safe. "An allied base?... do you have any coordinates of your location?" Yao asked with a curious tone, radio crackling over his voice. "Well I don't know the location, all I know is that I'm in a medical tent in a Soviet base..." Ivan replied with a bit of a childish tone to his superior. "Don't give me that tone... anyways be safe, I've picked up your frequency and will contact you later if something comes up..." The Chinese man hung up on the Russian, who sank back to his cot and gave the radio back to Toris. "Well... it looks like I irritated him more than anything, but at least he knows I'm safe..." Ivan said to himself staring at the canvas ceiling of the tent, then glancing to the brunette sitting next to him.

"Parachute...?" Toris said with a look of curiosity on his face, resulting in the Russian next to him raising his eyebrows tiredly. "I'll explain later... I need to rest now, da?..." Ivan stared at the canvas above him once more, leaving Toris to nod his head in response. Slowly Ivan fell asleep past the pain lingering in his body, but his tiredness brought sleep to him faster accompanied by the warmth of the lamp. Slowly Ivan was enveloped in a comforting warmth, he was safe... for now.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Evening was setting upon the snowy landscape, painting the surrounding snow in lush orange and red tones. The whirring of a plane droned out the peaceful silence of the area as it descended lower and lower… until it landed in the icy field, almost skidding on the frozen ground beneath. The cargo plane stopped its skidding just in time before it approached the hanger, its droning slowly quieted down and silence was once again returned to the military base. Moments later a young man hopped out of the plane and proceeded to walk towards a guarded door, causing the man standing guard to stiffen up and salute his superior. "Welcome back General Yao" The man said acknowledging his superior as he opened the door he was guarding, letting Yao in to the small military base.

Yao walked straight in not wearing his usual calm face. Something was bugging him, but he didn't let this show to the saluting men he came across while heading to the meeting room down the hallway. Yao saluted as he was met with his superior within the big round room. "I have come to inform you about the mission, Field Marshal Braginskaya." The young general said with all seriousness in his voice, his superior took note of this with a slightly worried look. "This involves Colonel Braginsky... Doesn't it." spoke a somewhat calm female voice from the Field Marshal, her blue eyes surveyed the brunette man as he had seemed to expect such a response from his female superior. "I know him well... he was causing you trouble again?" she asked the young man, who spoke somewhat seriously at her retort. "Ma'am, He jumped out of a plane without a parachute and injured himself... I'd say he's causing me trouble by compromising the mission..." Yao said causing the Field Marshal to look away with a look of discomfort. "Is he... alright?" The Blond woman asked with worry in her voice, her sapphire eyes growing wetter in appearance, as she looked at Yao with a pitiful face.

"I would say he's in safe hands right now, but I am unaware of how bad his physical condition is, or where he is at the moment..." Yao said, seemingly calming the unnerved blond in front of him. Although a hint of worry still lingered on her face. Although that worry quickly dissipated "That's good...Which bases are closest to the area where he was dropped, General Yao." She asked with more determination in her voice, she brought up a good plan. "He said he was on an allied base, although there are a few German bases in the area he was dropped off at..." He said while pulling out a map. Unfolding it, Yao placed the map on the meeting table, showing his superior The flight path and the drop zone. "Ok, so our plane flew along this path and Ivan jumped here..." He pointed at a red "X" on the map after running his finger along the line that was the flight path, his superior nodded at this information. "Now you see these green and red circles..." Yao pointed towards the marked locations. "Yes... I see... These are the supposed bases belonging to the Axis, or Allied Forces I assume..." She replied in interest at the map. "Correct. The red circles are the allied Soviet bases, while the green being the supposed German bases" Yao added to his superior's observation.

Yao looked up from the large oval table straight to the taller blond woman next to him. "I picked up a radio call from him earlier today, and the coordinates I got from the frequency was in the area... not too far from the drop site, but still a ways away from it..." Yao said with a neutral face, although he showed some sympathy for Field Marshal Braginskaya about the situation. "What do you suppose we do about Ivan... Ma'am?" He asked, ready to take action if needed. "Leave him...He's more capable than you think he is, and it's the war, we can't simply fly down and pick him up with the enemy so close by... Even if he's injured... He always finds a way to do his job..."

Yao looked on surprised at the unexpected answer from the woman. He couldn't even bring up a reply because it was too sudden for him. "I... I... uh...hmm... what should I do..." He muttered to himself quietly in thought of his comrade and the mission at hand, his female superior giving him an odd look before speaking again. "Why don't you go the barracks, It's been a long day... and you'll need rest for the recon work you'll be doing tomorrow in place of Ivan..." Field Marshal Braginskaya gave the order, causing Yao to stifle a Groan in disgust before saluting and obeying his superior's orders. Yao left the room leaving the young woman alone to her own devices. Making sure no one was around, the young woman let out a big sigh. "I'm sorry little Brother... I hope you're okay..."

* * *

The sun was setting now, as snow was falling among the various canvas tents set about the area. Many men sat around small campfires eating and huddling for what little warmth they could muster through the evening. Among a small campfire sat Ivan and his three comrades which saved him earlier that day. It was a tense moment as Ivan sat staring at the men as he ate a broth of potatoes and whatever the camp cook could stick in the soup with his good hand, which tasted rather bitter... But food was food and he forced it down as best as he could with a look of disgust at the concoction, wishing he had vodka to wash the taste away. Toris broke past the awkward silence and crackling of fire, looking at the burning embers as he spoke. "So... Parachute Ivan... you never got around to telling me..." He spoke with awkwardness as his comrades and Ivan stared at him, with odd looks coming more from Eduard and Raivis as opposed to Ivan who stared silently into the fire's wispy arms.

"It was to avoid detection from the enemy... Jumping with a parachute would notify them of where you were to land and is not as stealthy as jumping without one... although it comes with its risks, as you can see by me..." Ivan spoke with a solemn but happy tone, when he saw the surprised looks from the others. "All of that from a plane jump...did you have too much to drink to do such a stupid thing..." The youngest blond said with curiosity, although he retreated into shy quivering lump when all he got back in reply was a rather creepy smile and laughter from the man. Eduard ignored what was going on and listened with great curiosity, watching the Russian and the brunette next to him who looked rather intrigued at Ivan's account. "So what were you sent to do Ivan...?" Toris asked as Ivan took another sip of stew with disgust. "Recon... That's all I can tell you" He looked off at the distance dramatically with a smile, but quickly frowned when he finished off the last of his food.

"I swear I'm going to need more than a pint of vodka to get that taste out..." Ivan complained as he placed his bowl on the ground next to him, causing everyone else to chuckle at his outburst, although they showed their distaste for the food as well. "I wouldn't tell that to the cook, He's from Britain and that would offend him..." Eduard chuckled getting some raised eyebrows from the others. "Well that would explain it..." The Russian spoke with contempt, he would rather drown himself in borscht than eat the food at the camp... but he needed it as did everyone else.

About a half hour later it was time for most of the men to turn in for the night. Toris led Ivan to the medical tent where he was staying, acting as a support on his injured left side avoiding placing discomfort on the Russian. "You good Ivan..?" Toris asked as he helped Ivan onto his cot, minding his injuries. "Yeah… I'll be fine…" Ivan said shifting his sore body into a more comfortable position, until finally lying down. As Toris was placing the thick blanket over the man he was met with the Russian's voice. "So… Where are you from? As you've probably already figured from my uniform… I'm from Russia…" He asked with a sort of bored curiosity in his voice, as he pulled the fuzzy thick blanket up to his nose as best as he could with his uninjured arm.

Toris gave into Ivan's questioning, because he too wanted to know about the man. "I'm from Lietuva… or what you guys call Lithuania" Ivan looked up seemingly pleased with the results of his prying. "And I suppose your comrades aren't Russian as well, their names seem foreign to me…" The Russian added, digging himself deeper as if he was a child being told a bed time story. "Well, Eduard is from Estonia, and Raivis is from Latvia… Eduard was raised by doctors so you're lucky you had him tend to your wounds." Toris let out a weak chuckle at his final comment, sitting down on the edge of Ivan's cot, in which the blond let out an interested sigh. "And Raivis…?" Ivan questioned curiously seemingly more interested in the affairs of the man he was talking to. "Well we don't know much, but apparently he was abandoned by his parents when the war started so they could live better… It's a shame really… But he's a strong boy despite his age." Toris continued on, forgetting the time.

"Ah… I really must go to my bunk Ivan… If you need anything just ask one of the nurses on duty… Or Eduard if he's awake…" The Lithuanian said with hurry, as he stood up brushing himself off. Ivan looked a bit disappointed as he wanted to hear more from the brunette. It was soothing to hear his calm voice talking. "Aww I wanted to hear more about Toris too…" Ivan said with a bit of a childish tone as he smirked at the brunette, causing him to blush. "N-Not tonight Ivan… I have to be in my barracks or else…" The brunette said with a bit of an unnerved tone. "Well good night Ivan and feel better." Toris bid the Russian a good night as did Ivan. "Spokoynoy Nochi friend…" Spoke Ivan who snuggled into the cot more before closing his eyes and falling asleep. "Alright, Friend..." He spoke with the most calm and caring voice towards the man. Toris had walked out through the snow and into his barracks where Eduard and Raivis were asleep. Although Eduard was bound to get woken up for his medical shift, so the Brunette tried not to disturb the sleeping man. Smiling, The Lithuanian got into his bunk and fell asleep peacefully with a warm feeling building up in his heart… A special feeling even he couldn't explain.

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A/N: a little bit shorter than the last chapter, but it's building up more and more in plot. I'll try to bring out a chapter once every week or so depending on my work schedule and free time. Keep on reading Comrades! For the war never ends in the heart 3... Expect chapter 4 to have more drama and plot. I bet you can't wait.. ^J^


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Alright this chapter is up a day early, but I just couldn't wait, I even stayed up late to finish it lol. Back to a normal length chapter... and for some reason I keep on feeling like this is like a very messed up Soviet version of M*A*S*H... but it actually isnt... More plot... Yay. I hope you enjoy :3.

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~Chapter 4~

Steam was wafting off a fresh mug of green tea as a lone man sat by himself in the only cafeteria on base. It was early morning and the only people awake were those on guard duty, base cooks, or those who were finishing night shift in the frigid military base. The lone man happened to be General Wang Yao, who was having his morning tea before his mission that day... Yao really was a man of routine, so much so that he woke up extra early this day so he could have this quiet moment to himself... alone sipping tea in silence. This silence was however disturbed by the clacking of shoes coming closer to the sitting man. Yao took notice of this and turned around to see who disturbed the silence. The brunette man was met with a beautiful figure, female in fact. She was wearing a dark brown overcoat hiding the fact that she was wearing pants underneath only showing her black polished military issue boots. Her medium blond hair tied back and covered by an ushanka. She stared intently into the brunette's eyes causing the poor man to shudder with a chill.

"You must be General Yao... Correct?" she spoke sternly to the brunette man, staring as he took one last sip of his tea before replying to the woman's question. "You are correct, miss... and you are?" Yao questioned as he had not seen this woman's face around the base, but he was met with a colder stare... he swore he felt the room drop a few degrees with the encounter of this intense woman. "Nyet... no questions now, you are to come with me to the Field Marshal. Is that Understood?." The blond woman asked rhetorically before turning around waiting for the man to follow. Yao understood, but felt a bit depressed having to leave his tea behind as he followed the woman out of the empty canteen. Their footfalls echoed through the silent cold hallways, almost eerily as the creepiness was accentuated with the old flickering light bulbs that hung from above. The duo made with haste as they arrived into the Field Marshal's office, making sure to close the door behind them.

The duo stood before Field Marshal Braginskaya as they gave the blond a salute. "You know why I chose you two... General Wang Yao... Special Ops Sergeant Natalya Arlovskaya..." The duo stiffened, showing their fullest attention to their superior. There was a slight pause within the small office room. Silence was once more met with noise. "I chose you two to fulfill this mission in place of your injured comrade... in fact if you see Colonel Ivan Braginsky, do take him back to base for questioning and further treatment... Understood?" Natalya and Yao nodded, watching as their superior reached into a file and placed two black and white pictures on the table face up. One picture was of a man who appeared to have blond hair that was slicked back, and light coloured eyes which were probably blue. He wore an SS-Waffen uniform topped off with a visor. The second picture showed a younger looking man wearing a similar uniform to the blond's. He appeared to have neck length darker hair, possibly brown with an odd curl on the left. He had darker eyes then the other man's.

Yao and Natalya surveyed the pictures that their superior had brought out. "Who are these men?" Yao asked with curiosity, looking down at the pictures then to the Field Marshal, Natalya stared intently at the man as he asked. "These two men you see are your objectives. You are to find them and capture them... Then bring them back to the base for interrogation. You are not allowed to kill them, but injuring them is ok as long as it is not life threatening... Supposedly these men are within a German base about ten miles away from Ivan's jump site. You are to explore the area for signs of these two... But be warned for they could strike back..." She paused and handed the two soldiers a copy of the pictures and the mission plan and objectives. "This is just in case you forget... Please don't let the enemy get a hold of this... Now your flight leaves in an hour so I need you to get your gear together and meet at the airfield at o'six-hundred. You may now leave." The Field Marshal gave the order leaving the other two to salute at their superior before departing without question.

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The sun was shining dimly upon a dusty horizon a small house sat upon an open field... sitting alone... alone like the man who stood in front of the decrepit house. "Where am I...? This place... it's... familiar... yeah... familiar..." The young man spoke, his words echoing into nothingness whether it was out loud or in thought... it felt like both. Every step that was taken brought forth a hollow echoing, bringing forth clouds of dust. Ivan drew closer and closer to the building, its wood rotting, and paint peeling. He pressed himself against the window to peek inside. Dust caked the windows, leaving no trace of the inside to be seen from the barren treeless fields of gold. "This place...I think I remember..." He walked closer to the door knob reaching his hand upon the metal knob. Pausing when he heard the laughing of children... echoing into the distance. Nodding this off, Ivan opened the door and was met with an odd scene... it was his sisters... although much younger, sitting in front of a fireplace prodding at the fire within. Ivan looked back outside only to see a raging snow storm, only to be blown inside by a strong windy force. The two girls noticed Ivan's presence and ran full on towards him.

"Vanya! We thought you'd have gone missing... you worried us greatly..." Spoke a young Yekaterina, tears pouring from her eyes onto her blue dress. Her younger sister in tow clinging onto Ivan's legs... which were much shorter now. Ivan donned a pink scarf that once belonged to his older sister... It was precious to him, as it always made him feel like home no matter how far he was from it. Ivan took notice to the weight around his neck and smiled as he hugged his sisters. "Nyet sisters... It was you who were the ones missing for me... and I have missed you dearly." With his eyes closed he hugged his younger and older sister, but felt no warmth. Ivan was left with a void of nothingness between himself and his grasp. The young man was met with a different scene now...

He was in a lab, strapped to a gurney that was bolted to the ground, but he was back to his normal body... although stark naked and partially covered. Several men in doctor's cloaks surrounded him, one doctor with black hair started to speak, but his words were drawling out as if there was some sort of interference. "Our subject here has passed every single one of our tests with flying colours... what I'm about to show you will revolutionize the military of the Union... Heck, even the future... Now watch..." the black haired doctor was handed a syringe which contained a strange blue liquid. Sweat was dripping off of Ivan's head as the needle inched closer to his skin, until it was fully submerged into the man's thigh. He quivered as he felt the cool liquid enter his blood stream... although that cold was quickly replaced with a feeling of adrenaline as his heart rate and breathing increased. "It's... working..." The black haired doctor's voice slowed down and finally broke into silence as the scene was swiftly changed into reality.

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The young blond haired man was now back in the medical tent but had somehow found a way to squirm himself out of his cot and onto the board covered ground. One of the on duty nurses took notice and came over to help the man who was still in a half awake stupor. "Sir? Are you okay? sir-" the male nurse was met with a hand grasping at his throat tightly, as it was accompanied by the laughter of the man that owned it. The poor nurse grasped for his neck trying to loosen the injured man's hold. "P...Please...Let...Go...gck...". "Ivan... Please stop!" It was Toris, with Eduard in tow. They had heard the commotion from outside and had come to see what was going on. The grasp on the poor man's neck was loosened as the nurse fell onto Ivan limply. The blond man regained his senses and was returned back to reality in some slight pain. "Ack...Sorry there... it was just a dream... Da?" Ivan apologized to the poor nurse who was now rubbing at his throat as he had assured himself that this was in fact not a dream. Toris and Eduard looked down at the now floored blond with a worried look. "Don't worry... I'm ok... I think..." Ivan said while sitting upright slowly, rubbing his lower leg where the break was checking if he was okay himself.

"You need some help getting up...?" Eduard said walking to the man's left side supporting him onto the cot. Ivan positioned himself so he was sitting slightly leaned as he rested his chin into his right hand. He looked over to Toris who decided to sit next to the battered blond, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry whatever it was you were dreaming... it won't hurt you now-" Toris thought to himself as he smiled at the young man, although his thoughts were cut off by Ivan. "Toris... Even the darkest of dreams can turn into a reality... That's why we have bloody wars like this spawned from the dreams of what... A power hungry dictator..." Ivan spoke aloud but just enough for Toris to hear... almost as though reading the brunette's thoughts. Toris looked on shocked as he felt penetrated... he didn't know what to say... all he could do was stare off into the mid-distance because he too knew it was true. "That may be so... but even our dreams can bring light to that reality and bring forth a path of happiness if we just try..." He spoke on the same tone as the blond beside him and glanced to Eduard who had his arms crossed over his padded jacket. "I think you should check him for any further injury he may have caused himself..." Toris suggested to the man standing in front of him, who nodded and took action.

"I was planning on doing so from the beginning Toris, he he he..." This remark was made even more unnerving when he snapped on some gloves while he laughed, looking upon the Russian who was shaking his head placing a palm to his face in distaste of Eduard's little "joke". "Well if it's for my own good... then go ahead." Ivan said with a smirk staring at the blond who was pulling out some tools from the satchel on his side. "Aw... you're such a buzz kill Ivan..." Eduard looked down on Ivan with slight sarcasm in his voice as he didn't get the response he wanted from the man.

Moments later Eduard was done with his little check up procedure on the Russian, and bared a small grin. "Well you appear to be ok... past yesterday's wounds... well I've got others to tend to...I'll be back" The blond man gave a small salute to his brunette comrade who nodded in return, leaving the medical tent and those within. "I'm sorry Ivan, but you're going to have to stay in here for a while... I promise I'll be back, I have some business to do myself." The Lithuanian said with a sorry voice to his comrade... he really did want to be with him, but the young Captain had work ahead of him. "That's fine Toris... I've been in worse shape, so I'll be alright" Ivan looked down recalling his dream he just had as he glanced sullenly to the brunette nodding at his response. Toris waved off to the Russian, as the blond did to the Lithuanian.

Ivan rested himself back down and placed his right arm over his chest in thought. "It always comes down to this now... huh... and I still have to find that German... and that wimpy guy... uh yeah... that guy... ugh" He rolled his eyes in response to his thoughts about the mission he was supposed to be doing. Ivan shifted his focus to the nurse he had previously attacked. "You don't happen to have any vodka on hand here... I think it'd be best if we just drank away what happened..." The nurse rubbed his neck a little bit less, but he spoke a bit hoarsely "Yeah... I think I'm in need of it as well... you sure did startle me..." The nurse shuffled through one of his pockets and pulled out a flask. The two men squandered their time drinking what was left of the vodka, letting all their thoughts of the past event slide away with the liquor.

* * *

"Alright, Men! The enemy is nearby and we need to plan this out thoroughly. Do you all Understand! Or do I have to repeat it again!" ordered a blond strongly built man... His hair slicked back as his blue eyes shined with fury at the crowd of lazy soldiers, wearing green uniforms like his. They bore a German cross on the collar, but with trench coats for the winter. The crowd of men ignored their superior as they chatted among themselves, which annoyed the blond man standing at the front of the tented room even more. "Sergeant Vargas! Please Control your men!" He yelled at an auburn haired man of smaller build then the blond was himself. The smaller man responded by saluting with a dorky smile "Okey-dokey Captain...uh... Ludwig... But they're already under control from my perspective..." He left his blond comrade silent and frustrated grasping at his forehead with an open palm. "Why... did I have to be stuck with this guy..."


End file.
